Willmer Straight Grain AAA Extra Large Smooth Cavalier (Estate)

H. Willmer and Sons was an English pipe workshop founded at some point in the mid-20th century and closed in the mid-2000s. Harold Willmer himself was the brother of Dan Tennyson, one of Charatan’s freehand carvers, and would, according to Ken Barnes, often buy bowls from Charatan’s freehand workshop, which would be subsequently finished by Willmer’s craftsmen. In addition to these pipes, Willmer also manufactured more traditional briars, which were also made by hand.

Though its origins stretch all the way back to the pre-briar wooden and porcelain pipes of the 1700s, the cavalier would become a staple of English pipe making in the 20th century. These new cavalier renditions were first popularized in machine-made designs, though they ultimately became a fixture of freehand pipe manufacture in the post-war decades, especially in the hybrid forms of companies like F. Charatan and Son. Willmer was a make intimately connected to Charatan, and it may well be the case that pipes like this one began life in the latter’s freehand workshop. Either way, it turned out to be a stunning pipe, with a perfectly composed, neo-cavalier figure and more than enough straight grain to earn its triple-A grading.

The condition is very good. Minor darkening and finish fading on the rim and slight handling marks.

Details:

Length: 6.4″ / 162.5mm

Bowl Width: 0.90 / 22.86mm

Bowl Depth: 2.01″ / 51.05mm

Weight: 2.1oz / 62g